Fifth Chapter ─ Once Upon the Confused Dash

Atmospheric breakthrough from up the stratosphere down to the face of the Earth: The roof of Higanbana House as the calculated trajectory.

Shirayuki Otogibanashi made a fool of himself when he attempted to feel the sensation his classmates went through. From the event that the enemy attacked the classroom, strong Space Magic went into play and threw them nonchalantly in midair as he heard. It wasn't only the gist but the entirety of the scenario─and he felt guilty not bearing the punishment of being in a complacent group of fools… in a third-person perspective, I'd surely be a man straight from satire.

However, it doesn't constitute the truth, partly because I didn't bear the thoughts in its likeness.

It was only the byproduct of a playful mind.

The wind broke into my blazer, ripping the second button altogether. Inner vestment was bared, adding more into the elements of falling as seen in films and games. Air rushed inside to create their pockets, sensible in every sense. Steam blew warm, and the skin through the bones was wholly attacked.

What digressed away was the numbness and layered with weird satisfaction as if massaged.

I was ready for it that there was no immense fear whatsoever.

No such thing as alignment with what Kafka has gone through.

Frankly, I had more time to think of my grandfather's parting words.

How I was allegedly immortal.

If I happen to regenerate from the splatter, then it's causal to what can be referred as my immortality. If I don't, however, then it's permanent death. I didn't want such uncertainty, thus I slowed halfway down. Correction on posture and landed on both my feet safely─never establishing suicide as an answer.

Bullshit, I renounced─and went through with the objectives.

As it happens, the urgency has heightened itself up to the point of no return.

As a means of confirming if I'm on the right track, I stood on the roof for several minutes without care in concurrent crowd curiosity.

Tsukuyomi and Kafka stood among a crowd, staring up without throwing their identities off. I wasn't their classmate as they wore civilian clothes, nor they uttered any word pertaining to our companionship. It's easily understandable if Tsukuyomi injected butterflies through Kafka's skull─but it's superficial to trouble myself seeking confirmation.

I huffed a sigh and turned my head towards the sky, not minding the distance between the stratosphere and the surface. I perked my eyes and ears, waiting for the signal. I picked up crowd consensus instead.

"Snow White is here," someone from the background talked to someone.

The other replied with a question, "What is he doing in this place?"

"Are we going to talk about him?" Another one broke into the two, and pointed out, "Aldebaran took off from the Higanbana House."

A fourth person interjected a proposition, "He let Aldebaran out of the house."

"Do you see how fettered he is?" The first person felt dubious as he appreciated my filthy condition. "Snow White looks like he fought him, and he lost."

"Snow White, the strongest losing to the second strongest?!" The third person yelled in disbelief, immediately scattering the spores.

"What do you suppose is about to happen?" The second person asked the fourth person, both feeling disdain.

Of which he answered while gritting his teeth. "I don't know. I'm not feeling too great about it. These overly powerful Mages, they do whatever they want. I don't understand them, and I don't think I ever will."

Same shit, I don't understand what common Mages think.

Though I suppose the need for comprehension must be left in its roots.

I had an objective.

Not far into contemplation, the same large Sound spell circle emanated in the skies above.

Screaming Scoundrel shrieked straight supersonic towards the north. I might be too nuanced to play the innocent, but a smirk had to burst from my lips… I covered it with an elbow.

I shot straight to Kafka and Tsukuyomi as the wail resonated around town. Most onlookers took notice of it, and looked upwards. Noticing the silhouette to strike the said direction, it's most likely for them to think the second Strongest Mage has finally escaped.

Righteous for every second I crunched my mind for the tricks, it paid off.

Not wasting any more time, I propelled myself down towards my confused companions. Uncanny for Tsukuyomi to realize he needed to communicate. He broke his bystander character and shot his Mind spell away.

"(You didn't have to do that,)" I told him, blasting off in telepathic waves in near vexation.

Crunching into the very moments the butterfly entered my brain, the crowd noticed I was with them. It's a terrible misplay on his part, although it was forgivable. Cringeness pestered his countenance─but it was justified by the damning hand latching on his back.

"(Take my hand!)"

I prompted him, for which he took in a matter of seconds: meanwhile, I held on to Kafka's collar for his disconnected status.

It's for another propulsion.

Charged for a short split second, up and fast I carried them to the side where no people compressed.

Incidentally, the surprised Kafka Ikari dropped the wine bottles.

We left behind traceable footsteps in the area.

In a time smartly too early for the Magic Armor to reach us.

"(Yukihime, did your plan work?)" Tsukuyomi consulted as he followed along.

"(Huh? What plan did he have now?)" Kafka interjected, not missing his beat to follow running as well. "(I wasn't informed… no, not my problem. You didn't have to strangle me. I was about to reach for your hand, too!)"

"(I'm sorry… I missed the part where you can read into the future,)" I apologized: not truly sorry in every angle, but assuring him was the best option.

"(You should know full well I can read your mind right now too, asshole. And your mind is too noisy, Yukihime!)"

"(I'm letting my thoughts bared for you to pick the important aspects for what I might consider nonsense.)"

Constructed candidly, my words were delivered, as it was the perspective. Well, I'm not too sure. In terms of displeasure, I'd rather not keep any butterflies in my mind for more than several minutes. Amaterasu defies the nuance by a long mile, but she wasn't anywhere near that I can only rely on someone immediate… thus becoming a bummer.

We weren't running away from the townsfolk themselves.

Pretty sure nobody bothered to chase after us: they missed us by a hair's breadth.

Also, they had no reason to act like the police or mad people who had their properties destroyed. May they be the office workers from the road nearby or the students from the university, none of them were affected in any way. Few were concerned and called the police, but they definitely knew the prior complications of raising their pitchforks on three students entitled to the protection of aristocrats.

Concerning the escape, mostly, there was something urgent I needed to attend.

"(I don't understand your urgency!)" Kafka complained, beating the other complainant into it.

I didn't heed his complaint─

"(Now you're suddenly silent?)"

─then burned the butterfly from his last rummage to complain.

Tsukuyomi sensed so and informed the cynical douchebag.

Kafka must have looked at my back with an intent to read into our future: albeit insensitive, knowing that their fates faring in my lead won't give them any strawberry shortcake when the means meet its end. Well, they threw themselves into the problem after experiencing a sudden skydive. I'm not at fault in that department─and thus, I'm not liable.

More importantly, our run has toned down to merely a jog.

Suspicion had fallen down upon reaching a corner, and there was scarcity with the crowd. It was only a short walk to Shinomiya Station again─and it's a straight subway ride to Nichiyoubi North Station.

I took my jacket off and loosened my necktie.

Not allowing anyone to take a break, I walked onwards.

"A convict under house arrest left his lair," I broke the silence I incurred myself and spoke to them, "If not the police, the council could appear and hold us for interrogation. We needed to run to clear ourselves out of the picture."

"I don't see that as a problem," Kafka deadpanned from the back.

He immediately silenced himself after, not speaking another word. Like I thought, he knew I was about to say it─and he's not entertained. I wasn't trying to assure him then, but my words were true from a logical standpoint.

Sooner or later, the authorities will come to investigate.

Stale, the atmosphere grew within us.

And when I thought I could tolerate it, I stopped and looked back.

In front of the station, only a short distance away from the ticket machines.

"Do we need to sort out anything, or are we keeping the coldness?"

"I can't argue with that," Tsukuyomi delivered, his silence evoked after taking his brain out from a brine of displeasure. "But that's not everything, Yukihime. What did you do? We came back to see the pole extending off to space. What's with us being excluded as if we don't have the right to participate?"

Kafka nodded, eyes churned to displace my soul in time.

The sensation of being left out.

I see his problem, and hear it loud and clear.

I couldn't help but be affected knowing I'm currently playing the detective, as always, left to pick the pieces for an already finished case. I see… I'm making them feel the nuance Ayase has left in my mind as soon as she disappeared in the black hole.

"Hmm. How am I supposed to explain myself? Let me collect my brain cells, first…"

How should I begin?

It's hard so I'll play by intuition.

First thing considered, it has been orchestrated from the top to bottom, only that there were no thoughts to it, at all?

It's how it has been.

Orchestration.

Of course, that's the comprehension at the drop of the hat when viewed with a straight look. Concrete plans were laid out when we visited Higanbana House for information. I couldn't have done it without their help, pacifying my grandfather into hardening his unfathomable adoration as a grandparent.

Also, it was the primary goal.

By necessity of gaining clues to the rather strong opponent, we needed his intel in the fields discussed about all the Mages. It's only right to consult someone who has reliable sources and data.

What remained of all the sequence was the orchestration.

He who defies our class combined─was the person we were looking for.

However, there's also another person in my line of sight that would be overlooked by everyone else.

Since I was in the scene when the wall in the classroom was absorbed by the overpowering black hole.

I declared it in front of Aya, and have never let go of it.

"I'm sorry about the secrecy, but I kinda used you two to lay out a plan I confined for myself." I faced them… and quite awkwardly, smiled in a show of a disdainful apology. "I've used confusion, or something similar?"

Kafka showed an eerily provoked smile.

He felt it, because more or less, the first option to tackle clairvoyants is to confuse them.